Belmont Speedway, Circa 1951

BOB PILGRIM PHOTO

Comments

[Donald Mix]

My uncle, Boyd Bambauer, raced at Belmont, not sure what years. My grandfather, John Bambauer, would trailer him and Bugsy to the track, although I always heard that Dick Mann rode his BSA on his paper route during the week. I also remember them saying that they'd disconnect the brakes on race day, which impressed me as a little kid. Uncle Boyd raced an Indian Scout in a Warrior frame, as I recall.

[Dan Barnes]

I was there almost every week for the hardtops (in season). Marshall Sargent, Al (MAMBO) Pombo, Joe Leonard, Burt Foland, Clyde (last name) and all the others always made for a great night for a kid. ALWAYS early enough to see warmups and time trials. My dad won one of the destruction derbies.

[K.K.]

Yep, those were the good ol' days. My dad raced his Plymouth hardtops at Belmont Speedway in car 711 and later his race car was number 774. My dad earned the nickname "up and over Harry Kolstad" since during a race he rubbed someone's tire and then the tire ran up the other guy's tire and my dad's car flipped violently and crashed. Then he was taken to the hospital in an ambulance, but that didn't stop him from racing. I still have action photos of those races and still photos of his cars and one with me and my two brothers standing next to them. Joe Rizario, Marshal Sargent, Blll Lenheart, and Ronnie Barker were all dad's racing buddies at Belmont Speedway.

[Mark Davis]

I’m looking for any photos of my dad who raced in the '50s and '60s at Belmont and other Bay Area tracks. His number was 74Z. His name was Ray Davis. His race photos were lost. If anyone has images, that would be great. Thanks.

[Frank Tiedemann]

I remember being at Belmont every Friday night for the bike races. My parents were members of the tri-city motorcycle club a block behind the track.The guys in the club worked the corners, so Mom and I were in the stands and Dad was on the track. I was born in 1950, so from early on through, not sure when it was torn down, I'm guessing 1958-1960. I rode my mini bike in the field after it was torn down. I also remember going to a miler at Bay Meadows, I think I was around 4 years old. Very exciting times for a young boy.

[Christine M Green]

I just came across a 10th Anniversary Belmont Speedway Program in my mother's storage. Does this have any value and would anyone be interested in it? I wasn't born till 1968, so I have no reason to hang on to it.
Christine Green
Oakdale, California

[Gregory Pope]

My Dad took me to motorcycle races at Belmont in the early Fifties. Remember the sparks flying from under their left boot as they hit the corners. Some of the racers rode their bikes to the racetrack. Rode motorcycles for 60 years myself. Was a Joe Leonard fan when he raced at San Jose Speedway in cars also. Thanks for the memory.

[Durward “Brandy” Brandis]

I lived in a house on East Hillsdale with a south-facing bedroom from 1948 into 1954, when I was a little squirt, and frequently went to sleep to the music of the racing engines at Belmont Speedway. Dad took me to watch the jalopy races occasionally, and I, too, remember the smell of the fuel. Perhaps that’s why I’ve been a gearhead and motor sports fan for the past 70 years.

[Gerald (Jerry) Herman]

My Dad (Frank Herman) was a maintenance person and we lived on the grounds about 1948-1949. Great time. My Mom was the trophy “queen” at some of the midget races. So memorable.

[Jim Branchaud]

We lived in the Homeview area of Belmont from 1948 to 1958. Our "gang" would walk to the speedway frequently and sneak in. But I would go with my father for the "big events." Midget racing and destruction derbies were a favorite. I remember most the smell of the methyl alcohol fuel.

[Jim Smith]

My parents took my entire family to the motorcycle races every week during racing season. I became the Joe Leonard of my neighborhood, with the addition of baseball cards and clothespins. My entire family followed Joe through his biking, then his auto racing, and finally through his Indy racing.

[Stephen Eichelberger]

My Dad took me to a 4th of July destruction derby at Belmont speedway sometime in the 1950s. There were more than a hundred cars and they paraded in front of the stands with sparklers and cones spewing out the windows. Some garages had teams of four cars, all painted the same, that would gang up on their victim. They had heats of about 20 cars and then a long break to try and get previously smashed cars going again for the main. One car rolled over, and another car's trunk flew open, revealing a bunch of tires stuffed in. Everybody thought that might be cheating. For a young boy, it sure was more exciting than any two- team stick-and-ball sport I'd ever seen.

[Vivian Brash]

In 1975 I married Oscar Brash, who was partners with Ted Smyth, and they owned the Belmont Speedway in the early 1950s. The story goes that Oscar was the one who came up with the idea of the Destruction Derby, but one of their racecar drivers moved away and introduced it somewhere else, so he got the credit for inventing it. Oscar died in 2001, and my son would like to know if anything was ever documented about his Dad, the Speedway and the Derby, but I can't find anything except that Ted Smyth was the owner. I would sure appreciate it if someone could find anything. It would mean the world to my son. He says he doesn't like to talk about it because there's no proof. Also, he would love to have a Belmont Speedway T-shirt, but I doubt that they had those back then. I do have a pencil from the speedway.

[Garey]

1959 for me. Much fun. Jalopy races too!

[Ed Burggraf]

As a kid, I used to go to the Belmont Speedway to watch 'destruction derbies". They had some of the biggest, longest lasting demo derbies that I have ever seen. It was a hoot. Some memories can never be repeated, this was one.

Ed Burggraf
Redwood City, CA 1945-1960